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PHOENIX – Robert Kraft, the visionary who bought the troubled New England Patriots in the 1990s and turned them into an NFL dynasty, was envisioning the future of the NFL when he spoke to reporters Monday.
Kraft, who definitely gets it, would like to see a future NFL that plays 18 regular-season games, plays only two preseason games, includes two bye weeks and, oh yeah, has each team playing one of its games internationally.
So there it is…the NFL’s dream scenario for the 2030s.
New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
Robert Kraft imagines a change in the NFL
“I like the long term for the growth and development of the league because, to keep our league healthy and increase revenue, I think the preseason games have not been what they used to be when we owned the team,” Kraft told New England-area reporters during a break at the NFL’s annual meeting. “And moving to 18 games and having that real content and being mindful of player safety, I personally would like us to have a second bye week.
“But then, it would allow us to grow the game internationally. Every team in the league would play a game overseas… I think it would be a lot more exciting for the fans to have an extra game instead of the way our preseason games are stacked up.”
This is not a dream. It’s a league that craves growth and money to build a penthouse on its already lofty position at the top of American sports.
And we know this because Commissioner Roger Goodell has leaked a somewhat similar view of Kraft’s scheme in recent years, usually before offering the necessary amount of restraint to lower expectations.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. Photo: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
The NFL’s vision is for tomorrow, not today
“We’re not there yet,” Goodell said before Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara. “There is more work to do.”
NFL owners are apparently doing some of that work in current meetings. And so the issue is leaking to the media.
Colts owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon wants an 18-game regular season and made that point clear when speaking with local Indianapolis-area reporters, as well as during an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show.
She has complained in the past that 17 games don’t give teams financial security from year to year, because some years teams play eight home games and others nine, and some years one of those home games goes overseas to an international venue.
“I think as long as the players want it, which I think they would, because it would mean more revenue and ultimately a better product, I think it’s reasonable and it’s something we would work on,” Irsay-Gordon told the Indianapolis Star.
Adding an 18th game would have to be collectively negotiated with the NFL Players Association. And in recent years the NFLPA has vehemently opposed the addition of an 18th game.
But the NFLPA itself has never vehemently opposed more money and benefits for players. And he has never expressed any complaints when the idea of expanded rosters, meaning more jobs for more players, has been raised.
Owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon of the Indianapolis Colts. (Photo by Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)
International games: a work in progress
So, do you smell a negotiation in the works?
Speaking hypothetically, one agent told OutKick that a negotiation could begin with the idea that the NFL wants one more game. And then players would get an extra week of rest, expanded rosters, a higher minimum salary, increased post-retirement benefits and more time off during the offseason.
Beyond the additional game, placing 18 of them abroad (twice as many as planned for 2026) seems easier than it really is.
“We’re in the early stages of that process,” NFL executive vice president Peter O’Reilly said. “We are expanding every year, we are learning every year. We are entering new markets and making sure that every move we make, every new market we enter has to be successful.
“Obviously, there’s a lot of work that needs to be done to get to the stage that you described. I think the work we’re doing is making sure we have the foundation in place in case that opportunity exists.”
